I was pretty excited when I saw a New York Times article today stating that one in three Americans say they take a nap on any given day. I have to admit, I would have guessed that the percentage would have been much lower, though with as exhausted as people let themselves get from not sleeping enough at night and overworking themselves during the day, it’s pretty inevitable that they’d collapse at some point.

My favorite part of the article is a quote from James B. Maas, a Cornell University sleep expert, who says that napping “should have the status of daily exercise.” My weekly amount of exercise just went way up! Thanks, James B. Maas!

As positive as these numbers are, surely we can do better than merely 33%. As part of overhauling health care, perhaps the government should mandate daily naps for everyone. Who knows what benefits it could have on our overall health as a nation? At the very least, it seems like it would be worth running, say, a 10-year trial to judge the effectiveness of 100% of the population taking daily naps. Time to call your representative and demand action (or inaction, as the case may be).

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I believe that modern life doesn't have to be all stress and struggle. I believe that the path to joy and contentment is paved with idleness. If you feel the same way, or are starting to suspect that constant struggle isn't getting you where you'd like to be, join me in a celebration of the idle life!